Mocs drop 46-7 decision at Florida State
Donovan Weaver
Issue date: 9/18/08 Section: Sports
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FSU drew first blood with touchdowns their first two offensive possessions, beginning with a 44-yard pass from quarterback Christian Ponder to Corey Surrency with 8:33 left in the first quarter.
Seminoles' running back Antoine Smith scored on a 12-yard run only four minutes later.
Although down 14-0, the Mocs quickly battled back. Their three-play drive ended with a 62 yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Tony Pastore, Woodstock, Ga. He found a streaking Jordan Hazard, Marietta, Ga., down the right sideline just before taking a savage hit.
Undaunted, FSU fought right back with an impressive 23-second, two-play drive ending with another Ponder-to-Surrency connection for the 39-yard score.
The Mocs defense got a break on the next Seminole possession, as FSU marched 67 yards down the field, but the 44-yard attempted field goal proved to be one yard too many for kicker Zach Hobby. He redeemed the miss by splitting the uprights on a 43-yard field goal attempt on the ensuing FSU offensive drive, taking the home team into halftime with a 30-7 lead.
In the third quarter of play, the Seminole defense backed the Mocs' offensive effect into their own end zone, giving FSU's Roosevelt Lawson ample opportunity for a FSU safety with 11:33 on the clock. At 3:39 left in the quarter, FSU again found the end zone on a 55-yard carry by D'Vontrey Richardson, upping the score to 39-7.
The final blow against the Mocs came with 4:54 seconds left in the contest as the Seminole's Richardson connected with Bert Reed for a 36-yard pass into the end zone. That score put the game at 46-7, where it remained until time expired.
Mocs head coach Rodney Allison did not seem too disappointed with his team's effort.
"I didn't feel like it was a blow-out," he said in a post-game interview, in comparison to the Oklahoma game two weeks ago. "I think we had some critical mistakes at times...there were three or four things we could have done better over the course of the game that would have made it a more competitive game, but I thought at some points...we played pretty decently.